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see / bionic
eye / patient / artificial / problems / eyesight / worse and worse / simple /
national
health service / operation / microchip / success / many years /
remarkable
A man in Britain can see
again because of a new bionic eye. Ray Flynn, 80, became the first patient in
the world to get the new device, which is an artificial retina. Mr Flynn
suffers from a condition called age-related macular degeneration (AMD). This is
one of the most common problems with eyesight around the world. Flynn started
losing his sight ten years ago. Doctors told him eight years ago that he had
AMD. From that time, his sight became worse and worse. It became so bad that he
could only see things out of the corners of his eyes. Everything in the centre
of his eyes was blurred and he could not see shapes properly. He said that even
looking at simple things made him very tired.
Mr Flynn's bionic eye cost
$125,000. Britain's national health service hopes the cost of the operation
will come down. This means many more people will be able to have the operation
for free. Flynn had the surgery last month. Doctors spent four hours putting a
microchip in the back of his eye. Doctors are very happy with the operation,
which they said was a success. Flynn can now read a newspaper and admire the
flowers in his garden for the first time in many years. His doctor, professor
Paulo Stanga, said: "Mr Flynn's progress is truly remarkable. He is seeing
the outline of people and objects very effectively." Professor Stanga
hopes scientists can also help people who have been blind from birth.
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